Teams & Riders The Remco Evenepoel is the next Eddy Merckx thread

[KoopaCycling]

Remco won BP and could have won Amstel. Not sure how him participating in those is bad. Maybe he should have then skipped FW as he is always unlikely to win that. And perhaps even LBL to have a proper run up to Romandie. But that's hindsight. And racedays can be useful as well. We'll see how well he does in Romandie. After LBL he'll probably race it more like he raced Tour of Britain. Training being more important than winning. But if the legs are there, he'll probably give it a go regardless.

After that he has almost 2 months to get ready for the Tour. He ain't gonna ride the dauphiné to win it methinks.
Just checking how far he's at. As long as he don't crash in Romandie ofcourse.

Will also add that i'm not a fan of the Vingegaard strat of putting all your eggs in one basket. If you do that, you're one crash away from having lost an entire season.

I said a couple of weeks ago Remco should aim for
-BP
-Romandie
- National TT
-UEC RR

and give his all in the Tour.
I still stand by that. Even if a Romandie win is looking more unlikely.

 

[LookProGoSlow]

Well, Evenepoel changed his narrative about LBL since yesterday and said at the pre race interview of Romandie that he did have the legs on Redoute yesterday but that his team was at fault not delivering him to the front before the start of the climb. Link to HLN.be (Dutch only I think) https://www.hln.be/wielrennen/reden...maar-aan-grote-collectieve-fout-lag~aeca6618/

 

[KoopaCycling]

Well, Evenepoel changed his narrative about LBL since yesterday and said at the pre race interview of Romandie that he did have the legs on Redoute yesterday but that his team was at fault not delivering him to the front before the start of the climb. Link to HLN.be (Dutch only I think) https://www.hln.be/wielrennen/reden...maar-aan-grote-collectieve-fout-lag~aeca6618/

He also said he was done in the last hour. Also used we as in himself as well.

 

[jmdirt]

He said he just didn't have the legs in the final climbs.

Yes, as expected, but maybe he needed to visit the side of the road too?

 

[Sciatic]

Well, Evenepoel changed his narrative about LBL since yesterday and said at the pre race interview of Romandie that he did have the legs on Redoute yesterday but that his team was at fault not delivering him to the front before the start of the climb. Link to HLN.be (Dutch only I think) https://www.hln.be/wielrennen/reden...maar-aan-grote-collectieve-fout-lag~aeca6618/

Strange. That doesn't seem to fit with watching that part of the race, because there were hardly any Soudal riders anywhere around. I guess he or someone could fault them for not being good enough period, but how can you expect them to position their leader at the front if the remaining domestiques can't even make it to the front?

 

[Netserk]

Well, Evenepoel changed his narrative about LBL since yesterday and said at the pre race interview of Romandie that he did have the legs on Redoute yesterday but that his team was at fault not delivering him to the front before the start of the climb. Link to HLN.be (Dutch only I think) https://www.hln.be/wielrennen/reden...maar-aan-grote-collectieve-fout-lag~aeca6618/

“That was a major collective error. We were too far back on La Redoute. My form was there — my power numbers on La Redoute were better than in the editions I’ve won. With a better position I could’ve gone with Healy and Ciccone (in the chase behind Pogacar, ed.). It wasn’t my absolute best day and I felt a bit tired in the final, but it was actually pretty decent.”

“We were far too badly positioned at the foot of La Redoute. We didn’t race aggressively enough heading into that climb. It’s a shame, because I actually had the legs to stay with the second group. It would’ve made for a very different race.”


So why give up and hide on RaF? Poor mentality.

 

[EddyMazzoleni]

Tbf positioning have been a big issue in all 3 ardenne classic for QS and Remco. However, still there was somenthing not running proprly for Remco himself yesterday, be it psicological or physical

 

[Sciatic]

“That was a major collective error. We were too far back on La Redoute. My form was there — my power numbers on La Redoute were better than in the editions I’ve won. With a better position I could’ve gone with Healy and Ciccone (in the chase behind Pogacar, ed.). It wasn’t my absolute best day and I felt a bit tired in the final, but it was actually pretty decent.”

“We were far too badly positioned at the foot of La Redoute. We didn’t race aggressively enough heading into that climb. It’s a shame, because I actually had the legs to stay with the second group. It would’ve made for a very different race.”


So why give up and hide on RaF? Poor mentality.

Wow. very different than what he said to RTBF in post-race interview.

 

[LookProGoSlow]

He also said he was done in the last hour. Also used we as in himself as well.

True. He also said he did better numbers on Redoute yesterday than in the editions he won the race.

 

[Rackham]

Evenepoel is evidently like Yates. As in there are two of them, aka twins.

The super confident cocky one is going to Romandie whilst the super honest not-so-sure of himself Evenepoel raced Liège yesterday.

Romandie Evenepoel is simply not happy with Liège Evenepoel's positioning and Quick Step's team performance. It all makes sense.

 

[Berniece]

Well, Evenepoel changed his narrative about LBL since yesterday and said at the pre race interview of Romandie that he did have the legs on Redoute yesterday but that his team was at fault not delivering him to the front before the start of the climb. Link to HLN.be (Dutch only I think) https://www.hln.be/wielrennen/reden...maar-aan-grote-collectieve-fout-lag~aeca6618/

Collective mistake is the same as the team's fault. Saying the team's fault makes it sound like not his fault, but his colleagues. While he meant it was everyone's fault, including himself.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

Evenepoel is evidently like Yates. As in there are two of them, aka twins.

The super confident cocky one is going to Romandie whilst the super honest not-so-sure of himself Evenepoel raced Liège yesterday.

Romandie Evenepoel is simply not happy with Liège Evenepoel's positioning and Quick Step's team performance. It all makes sense.

Maybe there are two Remcos and you are the first to realize it? I would expect stellar consistency in GTs then.

 

[LookProGoSlow]

Collective mistake is the same as the team's fault. Saying the team's fault makes it sound like not his fault, but his colleagues. While he meant it was everyone's fault, including himself.

Hang on, his job is to win the race. It’s his teammates job to deliver him to the front. He is right to say they failed their job there. He may just not be right in saying it was the reason for him performing poorly. Yesterday he made it clear he did not have the legs. Pointing the finger at the team (yes including himself) the very next day is just weird and probably unnecessary.

 

[Red Rick]

“That was a major collective error. We were too far back on La Redoute. My form was there — my power numbers on La Redoute were better than in the editions I’ve won. With a better position I could’ve gone with Healy and Ciccone (in the chase behind Pogacar, ed.). It wasn’t my absolute best day and I felt a bit tired in the final, but it was actually pretty decent.”

“We were far too badly positioned at the foot of La Redoute. We didn’t race aggressively enough heading into that climb. It’s a shame, because I actually had the legs to stay with the second group. It would’ve made for a very different race.”


So why give up and hide on RaF? Poor mentality.

The thing with Evenepoel is he will give a different excuse every interview usually contradicting himself.

But "I could have made the 2nd group and the race would have been different" is hilariously compatible with dropping like a sack of bricks on the Roche aux Faucons.

 

[EddyMazzoleni]

True. He also said he did better numbers on Redoute yesterday than in the editions he won the race.

According to strava he did the exact same time of 2023 on Redoute. Of course yesterday was a pretty easy day with good weather while 2023 was not.

 

[Netserk]

According to strava he did the exact same time of 2023 on Redoute. Of course yesterday was a pretty easy day with good weather while 2023 was not.

Heavier now than back then, so more watts this time around.

 

[QueenStagiaire]

The thing with Evenepoel is he will give a different excuse every interview usually contradicting himself.

But "I could have made the 2nd group and the race would have been different" is hilariously compatible with dropping like a sack of bricks on the Roche aux Faucons.

He did push the pace on Forges, reeled back the McNulty group and had the other riders fighting to hold his wheel there. I still think Roche-aux-Faucons was just him having given up on the race. He hasn‘t said anything about cracking before RaF, right?

 

[EddyMazzoleni]

Heavier now than back then, so more watts this time around.

The legend of Fatco strikes back, altough watts per kilo should favor lighter Remco slightly no?

On a side note, 2023 Remco and 2025 Pogacar kept a pretty similar pace after Redoute, although the latter was significantly faster on that climb

 

[Barkintheeye]

“That was a major collective error. We were too far back on La Redoute. My form was there — my power numbers on La Redoute were better than in the editions I’ve won. With a better position I could’ve gone with Healy and Ciccone (in the chase behind Pogacar, ed.). It wasn’t my absolute best day and I felt a bit tired in the final, but it was actually pretty decent.”

“We were far too badly positioned at the foot of La Redoute. We didn’t race aggressively enough heading into that climb. It’s a shame, because I actually had the legs to stay with the second group. It would’ve made for a very different race.”


So why give up and hide on RaF? Poor mentality.

If those quotes are correct he proves to a complete piece of s@@t and a total moron. So the team is to ”deliver” him into la Redoute? Ok fine but a quality rider wouldn’t need that and I don’t remember Pogacar whining about his team at MSR despite not being ”delivered” into Poggio.

 

[Red Rick]

He did push the pace on Forges, reeled back the McNulty group and had the other riders fighting to hold his wheel there. I still think Roche-aux-Faucons was just him having given up on the race. He hasn‘t said anything about cracking before RaF, right?

He was literally losing the wheel himself on La Redoute, then he closed some gaps he shouldn't have needed to close and if that fried him by the RaF already he wasn't that good to begin with.

Also, just giving up on the race when 2nd place is still clearly in play is not a mitigating option at all. That's probably the worst option.

 

[Barkintheeye]

The thing with Evenepoel is he will give a different excuse every interview usually contradicting himself.

But "I could have made the 2nd group and the race would have been different" is hilariously compatible with dropping like a sack of bricks on the Roche aux Faucons.

We should start calling him Little [political figure not to be named]. Fickle as a feather changing with the smallest gust of wind yet always the best in his own mind.

 

[Oldman]

On a normal day, Remco would be second.

Maybe...but the other two podium finishers managed to stay close without other help and after racing aggressively. Their effort defined their result and adding Remco might merely include another guy for Ciccone and Healy to beat in a sprint. Those two showed some serious form.
If adding Remco to the support group brought them back to Pogacar; then you have a more open outcome.

 

[houtdffan]

you CANNOT give Pog a 45 second head start on La Redoutte. However, that mistake may be on Remco. He blew up his team at FW for no reason

Yeah, he gave up when he saw he couldn't win. Because the climb up Forges looked like he was sprinting up the climb easily

 

[QueenStagiaire]

He was literally losing the wheel himself on La Redoute,

What wheel did he lose?

 

[Oldman]

Which makes it all the more baffling that the team does not care about a plan B at all. They also have Van Wilder, who won Tre Valli solo from a group with Pogacar, Roglic, Carapaz, O'Connor (who he rode off his wheel), but never is he used as either a back-up or as a decoy. Vansevenant and Schachmann could be used as decoy as well, they are both capable riders on this sort of terrain that could ride a good result.
In the days before LBL it was all about hoping to finally give the fans a 1v1 against Pogacar because it never really got to that in the classics they both started and about bringing the fight to Pogacar. And now after imploding, the narrative has shifted to "i'm not a robot", "it's quite logical this happened after his comeback from injury" though they also didn't see it coming. Another "obvious explanation" after the facts, just like his rain jacket in FW and him leading out the sprint 300m into a headwind. Seriously. **** off! The team does nothing to protect him from it, they parade him as their only option and that's a big reason why other riders aren't ready to step up when something like this happens. They aren't treated as viable alternatives or even outside options. It's the team who are much of the cause of why he has to deal with this pressure. Like they are amazed everybody is looking at Remco from Team Remco. Who would have thought?!
Either this team is in need of new management or he needs to move away for his own good. The team nor the team car are doing him any favors. It's not like they have the best performing staff of the peloton. At this point the only reason to stay is Specialized. But i fear that realisation has to come from within Evenepoel first, that he is being surrounded by yes-men.

Agreed that team strategy is flawed. On the other hand, he raced over 200km with either Pogacar right behind him or right in front of him. Getting out of position before Redoute? That is a serious mistake and Remco's alone. He can say "we" were out of position if he is using the royal/plural self-reference. Of all the things everyone knew: position on that hill was the priority. It's OK to say my training hasn't got me to the point I can dictate a race in the 6th hour....or third week but he still has to ride his bike to the hill base in some sensible way.